Joe Lieberman to Speak at Republican National Convention

Follows in the Steps of Zell Miller

Senator Joe Lieberman will speak at the Republican National Convention, helping to place John McCain's name in nomination for President, according to the Huffington Post. He will thus follow Zell Miller in a long tradition of Democrats speaking at Republican conventions.

By 2004, Zell Miller, former Governor of and Senator from Georgia was fed up with the Democratic Party in which he had spent his political career. So Senator Miller, who was winding down his Senate career anyway, decided to endorse President George W. Bush for reelection, rejecting the nominee of his own party, Senator John Kerry. As a reward, the Republicans have Zell Miller a prime speaking slot at the Republican National Convention for that year.

It was a smart political move on the part of the Republicans. For one thing it is always a good strategy to have someone from the other party at your confab to bemoan the fact that their party has gone positively nuts and nominated a maniac or a fool or a little of both and that he has no choice, loving country over party, to support your candidate instead.

The 1972 Republican Convention, for example, was filled with Democrats for Nixon, horrified at what their party had done in nominating George McGovern. And, as it turned out, they were right to be horrified.

As a treat, the audience for the 2004 Republican Convention got a stem winder of a speech from Zell Miller the likes that had not been heard since the 19^th Century. Zell Miller was half white haired, Old Testament prophet, half second coming of Andrew Jackson as he called down the wrath of the Almighty on John Kerry and instructed one and all on the virtues of George W. Bush.

Later, in keeping with the Andrew Jackson meme, Zell Miller offered to challenge TV host Chris Matthews to a duel for the shoddy way Matthews had treated Michelle Malkin on his show, Hardball. Even though such an event would have been a ratings boon, one could tell that Matthews was taken aback. Playing Hardball is one thing. Imagining a hardball zipping toward ones chest from the smoking muzzle of a dueling pistol is quite another thing.